Day Trip
by tm24
Summary: Tony and Michelle take a trip to a used book store pure TM FluffPlease read and review!


Disclaimer: Don't own _24 _or any of its characters

The only sound resounding in the silent domicile of books was the jingling of metal against metal; the jingling of keys to be more specific. An impatient sigh soon replaced the noise made by the golden keys.

"C'mon Michelle, we've been here for over an hour."

"I know, Tony, I can tell time," said Michelle from behind a mountainous shelf of used books.

"What are you looking for in there?"

"A car. What does it look like I'm looking for?" was her sarcastic reply.

"I _know _that."

"Well, you could help me, you know. It would make things go a little faster."

All Michelle could hear was another exasperated sigh and she shook her head as the outline of her boyfriend became visible behind the shelf she was currently scanning. He knelt down next to her and the box that had recently grabbed her attention.

"Okay, so what are we looking for here?" asked Tony, very eager to make this part of the trip as short as possible.

"You know, I didn't complain when you spent all that time in the food store the other day, when you were trying to find those "perfect" steaks."

"Yes, that's true, sweetheart, but you can't sustain life without food, and you, my dear, are, how should I put it?"

"Cooking challenged," Michelle simply stated with a slight grin. She was never ashamed of her cooking inabilities. She was exceptional at most other things, including the seduction of the man occupying the dusted ground searching through a box of books for an unknown title.

"Yes, cooking challenged. And without me to cook for you, how would you survive?" Tony asked jokingly.

"You know they do have those little places called restaurants and delis. I would still be able to eat."

Michelle looked over and had to laugh at the appalled look on Tony's face. She kissed him quickly and the look left his face, quickly replaced by a small smirk. Tony was always amazed at how her simplest gestures could make him smile. He was quickly forgetting why he didn't want to be stuck in a dingy, old used book store.

Michelle moved on to a new box while Tony was day dreaming.

"Hey, you still never told me what you were looking for," Tony said as he stood up to check a shelf.

"Michelle?" he asked when he hadn't received a response.

He turned around to see her rummaging excitedly through a box.

"Eureka!" she exclaimed, pulling a book from the bottom of the box.

"My mom and I used to read this book every summer, when we'd go on vacation to England to see my grandparents," Michelle explained as she turned the book over, revealing its title, _Pride and Prejudice. _

"When Danny was going through his "episode" with Carrie," she still shuddered at the thought, and so did Tony, "he needed money. Badly. So he took everything he could find, including the book, and he sold them. Sold them to the highest bidder. My favorite childhood memory sold for $5."

"I'm sorry, honey," Tony softly apologized as he again knelt down next to Michelle.

"I've been tracking it down for years. Danny told me who he sold it to. It was some friend of his from high school. I've been all over the net, and it led me here."

"How do you know this one is yours?" asked Tony.

"The first year I read it with my mom, she wrote something inside the front cover of the book."

Michelle opened the old dusted book to reveal beautiful, elegant, cursive writing. Tony silently read:

"To My Dearest Michelle,

This novel about love and values will stay with you forever. Cherish it and read it to your daughter as I read it to you. When you grow older and move away, use this to remember all the wonderful times we shared and use it to think about all of the wonderful things you will do.

Love Always,

Mom"

"Michelle, that's beautiful," Tony stated. He knew it was an understatement, but he wanted her to know that he understood why she looked for so long and looked so hard. He pulled her into a giant hug and he delicately kissed her temple.

"Thanks," she said.

"Anytime," he replied.

Tony and Michelle stood up together, still entrapped in the hug from which neither wanted to be freed. They only broke apart when they again heard the jingling of metal on metal. Tony's car keys had fallen out of his pocket and hit the ground. He bent down to retrieve them and when he did, he saw the reflection of a beautiful, smiling face behind him. A face that was content. A face that he knew he never wanted to live without. A face of a woman to which he was going to propose -tonight. With that, he grabbed the keys that no longer symbolized his boredom, but the way to unlock the door to the rest of his life with the most wonderful woman in the world. He pocketed them and put his arm around Michelle's waist, pulling her even closer to him as he paid for the book. They walked out of the store like this and Tony placed one last kiss to her temple as they entered the world of bright sunlight. The door of the dusty used book store closed and the elderly couple behind the counter watched with contented smiles and looked at each other with knowing glances. This kind of love only happens once in a lifetime. The couple they observed for the last hour and a half had that love, much like their very own. The old man wondered how long it would be until they read about the wedding announcement in the paper.

"I give it a week," he said.

His wife nodded in agreement as they heard the start of an engine and watched the couple drive off in a black SUV, but more importantly, drive off into the rest of their lives as one.


End file.
